After Jesus Loves Me, Jesus Loves the Little Children is one of the first songs children learn in Sunday School.
The song was written by Clarence Herbert Woolston. He was born in 1856 and died in 1927.
The lyrics are inspired by Jesus words in Matthew 19:14, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.”
Some versions alter Woolston’s version to have “red, brown and yellow, black and white.”
The tune is to a 1864 Civil War tune by George Fredrick Root known as “Tramp! Tramp! Tramp!” This song was written from a prisoner’s point of view to give hope to the Union Prisoners of War. The tune was also later used for “God Save Ireland.”
There are also some alternate lyrics to the song:
Jesus loves the little children,
All the children of the world.
Fat and skinny, short and tall,
Jesus loves them one and all,
OR
Jesus died for all the children,
All the children of the world.
Red and yellow, black and white,
All are precious in his sight,
Jesus died for all the children of the world.
Thank you for publishing the second alternate verse! I learned this as a child but had forgotten it. Today I was reading Matthew 19:13 and the song came to mind. I Googled the lyrics I remembered and came to your lovely web page. God bless you Sister!
Thank you for stopping by and sharing. It’s wonderful to hear from you and to know I was able to be of help!
I was just thinking about this song probably because of all the strife we’re experiencing in this world. I was taught it at a young and tender age when I learned that it doesn’t matter what the color of a person’s skin is, we are all children of God.
Absolutely! Thank you for sharing.
A few years ago, a book was written entitled ‘All I Needed to Know, I Learned in Kindergarten” I agree. But I was in the kindergarten of Sunday School. And, in those first few years, I learned all I needed to know. I learned to sing “Jesus love the little children, all the children of the wordBen ” with enthusiasm. I also chose two memory verses first for their brevity and surprisingly for their profundity. “God is love” and “Jesus wept.” After 91 years and may years of great education, I still come back to those words. That you for making all the words available to us.